1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a reaction for producing polyolefinic amines comprising contacting an olefin or a polyolefin with an azo compound under free radical conditions to form a polyolefinic nitrile having an average molecular weight of at least 250, followed by reducing the polyolefinic nitrile to the corresponding polyolefinic amine. The polyolefinic amines produced by the reaction may be included as a detergent in compositions, such as fuel compositions, additive compositions, and/or concentrate compositions.
2. Background Art
The use of conventional fuels without detergent and corrosion-inhibiting additives promotes the accumulation of deposits in the engine resulting from the presence of polar aromatic compounds and traces of lubricants.
The accumulation of deposits has a detrimental effect on the quality of evaporation of the fuel, which causes an increase in consumption, an increase in the emission of pollutants and of smoke, which is significantly greater during acceleration, and, finally, an increase in noise.
To overcome this problem of fouling of the engine, it is possible to periodically clean the fouled components and particularly the injectors but, in the long run, this method becomes very expensive.
Another method for reducing fouling by deposits in engines is to utilize detergents that are capable of being adsorbed on the metal surfaces to prevent the formation of deposits and/or to remove the deposits already formed. Polyolefinic amines may be used as detergents to prevent the formation of deposits and/or to remove the deposits already formed.
A need continues to exist in the art for methods of producing polyolefinic amines in an efficient and cost-effective manner.